Taiwan Ready to Talk Tariffs with the U.S. as Trade Tensions Rise

Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung said on Tuesday that the island is open to sitting down with the United States anytime to work out issues over new tariffs. This comes after U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a 32% tariff on Taiwanese goods, targeting countries like Taiwan that export more to the U.S. than they buy back. The news hit hard, with Taiwan’s stock market crashing nearly 10% on Monday, the first trading day after the announcement, before calming down a bit on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters outside parliament, Lin made it clear that Taiwan’s ready to talk about anything that could help, like investing more in the U.S., buying American products, or easing up on trade rules that don’t involve tariffs. “Whenever the U.S. is ready to set a time and a way to negotiate, we’re there,” he said. This follows President Lai Ching-te’s suggestion on Sunday to kick off talks with no tariffs as a starting point, promising to ramp up U.S. imports and investments to soften the blow.

The tariffs don’t touch semiconductors, Taiwan’s biggest export and a global tech lifeline, thanks to giants like TSMC but they’re still a big worry for an economy that depends heavily on trade. The U.S. is Taiwan’s most important ally, and groups like the American Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan are asking the U.S. to think twice about moves that could strain that bond.

Monday’s stock market nosedive was rough, but Tuesday was less chaotic, with the main index dipping another 4%. TSMC’s shares dropped around 4%, while Foxconn—a key supplier for Apple—took a 10% hit, the max allowed in a day. As Taiwan deals with this economic shake-up, its leaders are hoping smart talks and some give-and-take can keep the island’s economy strong and its role in the tech world secure.